Wilted Roses
by psychic.refugee99
Summary: The plan was to subjugate witches and warlocks as part of his dark army, that the world would end in fire and magic. After meeting one of Robichaux's promising students and living with warlocks, Michael thought seduction would behoove his plans for the Apocalypse.


Romy knew there was some tension in the house, it had something to do with the Council and the Supreme. Cordelia and her two most trusted advisors and co-council were packing and had canceled the day's lessons. She had wondered where they were going, the other girls of the house had no idea either. She was dying of curiosity and as a witch, didn't think no one else knowing or willing to gossip was a hindrance.

 _Maybe it'd be a good time to practice Divination._

She thought of all the ways she could attempt the arcane art, eliminating the ways she had already tried and failed. She had tried the most common methods and so far none of them worked. Most already suspected that Mallory would be the next Supreme, and Romy's own talents seemed limited to control over the elements; she had not shown any predisposition for any of the other Seven Wonders other than telekinesis, although she was only seventeen so she still had plenty of time to develop.

Although part of her wasn't all that interested in leading the Coven, the whole "only one Supreme at a time" thing was a downer. She didn't want to be the reason for anyone to die, she certainly didn't want to go through the waning phase of a Supreme; all of the diseases they seem to get once their powers started to fail and then having to see a younger witch bloom with life and power seemed like her own personal hell. She'd rather have several powers rather than all seven, there was such a thing as being powerful enough in her own opinion.

Ms. Benson was proof of that, as someone who had at least six of the Seven Wonders—although there was a rumor that the instructor had actually completed all seven, no one knew what it meant that there was a witch who could possess all seven and not be the Supreme—and she was part of the Council. Zoe had the respect of the Coven and Cordelia counted on her talent and advice, but she also had none of the ultimate responsibility. That, to Romy, was the ideal spot to be in: powerful and respected as an almost Supreme, but none of the burden of rule.

Cordelia was the Supreme, that meant she was nearly all powerful and every witch and warlock in the world was under her purview. The fact that she was dropping everything to go somewhere meant that the meeting had to be important. So if no one in the house knew what was going on, and the instructors would not volunteer the information, then divining the answer was the next logical step. While some might consider it intrusive, it was practically encouraged to practice anytime something eluded them. Her phone buzzed as she lay on her bed while reading the Encyclopedia of Divination Arts and wondering which she ought to try next.

 **grand chancellor has** **called 4 emergency meeting, the Supreme is coming! O.o**

She perked up, the exciting news surprising her. She was slightly irritated that Cordelia or the others didn't tell her they were going to the Hawthorne School for Exceptional Young Men and invite her along knowing she would always welcome a chance to visit the boy's school. She threw the phone and book down on her bed and rushed to the west wing of the mansion to try to catch Cordelia or Zoe before they left.

She skidded down the hallway when she saw the latter's door open and caught sight of her teacher.

"Ms. Benson," she greeted slightly out of breath. "You guys are going to Hawthorne's?"

Zoe sighed indulgently while she continued to pack her bags, nothing ever remained secret for long in a school of witches.

"Yes, the Grand Chancellor has called an emergency meeting and Cordelia is honoring the call."

"Can I come?" she couldn't think of a reason why she would be allowed, but she widened her eyes and exaggeratedly pleading pout. "Please" she whispered, she really wanted to go, clapping her hands together in mock prayer.

The older witch looked unsure, it wouldn't be a big deal to add one more person to the flight to California as it was a private jet owned by the Coven, but she didn't want to show favoritism.

"It's a business trip, a Council trip…"

"Yeah, but I haven't seen Dracen in forever…shouldn't we have like good relationships with the boy's school? I'll be Robichaux's…attaché…and then it's a business trip for me too."

She wasn't totally sure what the title meant but she had heard it in a movie, Zoe looked skeptical and used to Romy's tendency to spin things in order to get her way.

"Please, he's my best friend and Ms. Snow won't let him come to Robichaux's ever and he's too proud to let me pay for a hotel nearby. We're about to go on a break. Mr. Moore says I'm always welcome and I'll room with Dracen, I'll be back in time for preparing for the Blood Moon feast. I'll make my own way home. Come on, you're going anyway. Don't make me pay for a commercial flight out."

She didn't mention that while she ordinarily had free reign of her parent's credit cards, paying for a random flight out to California would be an expense her parent's would question her about and she did not want that to happen.

Zoe internally winced, knowing how misandric the eldest woman on the Council could be. She knew what it was like to miss her friends while she learned magic, even if they had technology to talk to their loved ones, it wasn't the same as seeing them in person. They would be on a break from school, and Romy was one of their more advanced students and got along well with the warlocks. She knew that the relationship between the schools could be less chilly.

"Fine you can come, but as my assistant and you have to be ready to go in the next half hour. Can you be packed in time? I expect a report of the school's status. This is a last-minute trip and it's almost disrespectful to call the Supreme to them and they're being oddly tight lipped."

"Gotcha, I'll be your spy. Thanks Ms. Benson!" Romy rushed out of the room, almost afraid that the older witch would rescind her invitation if she dallied.

"Not a spy," Zoe insisted, thinking it sounded unseemly, "you're the attaché!" she called out to the retreating teen.

Romy packed only her essentials which included toiletries, make-up, underwear, and outfits that would last her for a couple days.

 _Anymore I need, I'll just go shopping._

She thought of the no limit credit cards her parents gave her. She came from a family that had used their powers to gain wealth and they weren't usually the type to bother to check her charges, especially if they had to do with clothes and it wouldn't nearly be enough to warrant a closer look. She was also part of the few families that tried to keep the Witch culture alive, encouraging the witches in the family to marry well and have as many daughters as they could; she was the third daughter of five and the second witch in the family. She was expected to take a lead in the family business once she graduated Robichaux's and university, the non-magical members were there to support them. She was allowed certain privileges and freedoms that most teenagers would envy.

Curiosity burned through her, wondering what the emergency council sessions was about.

 **im coming! we'll be in cali tonite. wut is the meeting about?**

 **not sure, i think it has to do with new boy**

That made her even more curious, she was the first witch to find out about Michael Langdon and everyone was always enthralled with a new magical unknown bloodline. There had never been a record of any magical line from the Langdons, although her research into it showed that they were cousins to the DeLongpres, a family that could boast both a Supreme and trace their line back to the Salem Trials.

Dracen didn't know much about the new addition to the school, other than his name. There was such mystery surrounding the unknown warlock. Where was he found? Why was he not taught with the other boys? Romy thought it was so odd that he was being sequestered and tutored by the level 3 warlocks personally. She was even more surprised that she didn't hear about any of the other witches hearing about this new secret warlock. She expected at least one of the other girls would have heard something, most were biting at the bit to be introduced to eligible warlocks.

"What have you heard from Dracen?" Zoe asked later as they all settled into the private jet, on their way to California.

"He doesn't know for sure why the meeting was called, but he says there's a new boy at the school. No one knows where he came from and the instructors are being really secretive about him."

"I'm not surprised they're finding strays, men can't be trusted to keep it in their pants. He's probably an errant bastard, sired by some pompous warlock with delusions of grandeur and used his magic to seduce the weakminded," Ms. Snow said snidely as she sipped on champagne.

 _Jesus, lighten up Ms. Snow_

Romy decided not to say anything further, knowing there was nothing to do about Ms. Snow's disdain for men. There was also the awkward elephant in the room where Ms. Snow seemed to forget that Fiona Goode had basically acted that way during her years as Supreme and no one knew who Cordelia's father was; plus the plethora of new witches they had welcomed to the school after the Supreme had revealed to the world their existence. It wasn't like each one could be accounted for and traced to a known witch family.

"What is special about this new boy?" Cordelia ignored Myrtle's comments and knew her mentor didn't mean anything by it, she wanted to know more about what they were getting into. Something in her bones felt disjointed, and she had felt this way for a while; it was the reason why she had resurrected Ms. Snow.

"Don't know. Dracen says that he's only been there for a couple weeks, but he hasn't attended a single class. The teachers tutor him one on one. He also keeps to himself, so he doesn't know much. He knows his name is Michal Langdon."

It wasn't a known witch family name, but it did seem familiar to at least Myrtle.

"Are they related to the DeLongpres of Virginia? I seem to recall Eveline had a cousin named Langdon."

"I think so," Romy pretended to not know, she didn't want to expose that she had known about the boy for a while and just now telling them.

That seemed to give the boy some estimation in Myrtle's eyes, at least minimally. The fashionable woman supposed that being related to a former Supreme meant something, although not much since he was still just a warlock.

"I'll try to get more background info while I'm there, I'm staying the week."

"I don't understand how you could stay in that… **cave** filled with sweaty men-children, with their creepy kewpie-doll uniforms. They're a crime against decency, I swear."

Romy giggled, she agreed that the uniforms were ridiculous and didn't understand why the school insisted in forcing the boys to wear uniforms. When she first saw Dracen in the Edwardian styled uniform, she was thankful that Robichaux's only had a dress code which mostly just entailed wearing black.

Each witch on the plane had dressed in black, it was all haute couture and in season. Romy thought they all looked great, but sometimes wished it was more fashionable to wear colours.

"Are you guys going to do any shopping?" Romy tried to turn the conversation to something lighter and it was one of Ms. Snow's weaknesses.

"Oh yes, we have the newest Drake collection to see; we're getting a private showing…"

Myrtle regaled them with her plans for the rest of the trip, Romy was grateful that Ms. Snow had just come up with an excuse as to why she was in California and could justify the return ticket home.

She texted a few non-witch friends, shoring up the alibi if anyone in her family would happen to look into her trip.

* * *

From the private airstrip, there was a black SUV waiting for them as well as a bodyguard dressed in all black. They stayed the night in a hotel, all eating dinner in a Michelin Star restaurant—Ms. Snow regaled them with tales of a particularly fine dining establishment with an American President she wouldn't name outright but told them,

"A few drinks and an unforgettable blow job later, I knew all the secret passageways into the White House."

They all snickered, their tongues loosened by the wine and even Cordelia had shared a sexual war story. Romy found out more about the Witch's Council than she ever would want to but had a great time.

The next day, from the hotel they drove a few minutes south and passed miles and miles of country road until they reached a turn that most would ignore and it wasn't on any map or GPS. The dirt road led to a black wrought iron gate that opened automatically for them. There was a lone spiral sculpture, the lone remnant of the previous school that now acted as the entryway to the underground mansion.

Romy could admit it was a little weird the entire house was underground, but she sympathized that they had been attacked and having a mansion above ground felt like a huge target on their backs. Unfortunately, the warlocks were not powerful enough to create a strong enough protection spell to ward off mobs as the New Orleans mansion could. It was infuriating to Romy that the witches' coven wouldn't lend their power to help protect Hawthorne's and furthermore, the warlocks wouldn't accept the help even if it were offered.

 _Prideful idiots, all of them_

That didn't stop her from putting every protection spell she knew of on Dracen and more on his personal room. She wasn't strong enough to protect the entire house, but she would protect her best friend.

In the meantime, she had been petitioning both the Grand Chancellor and the Supreme to work together and protect each other. Both vehemently refused, each stating that the other side had their own rules and worked together only when they absolutely had to but no more; that each side had to deal with their own problems and they didn't have anything to do with another. Grand Chancellor Augustus still hadn't forgiven Cordelia for outing their kind, and the subsequent attack of the boy's school only fueled his resentment.

Romy felt they were all part of the same team, they were all part of the same magical family that ought to help and protect one another; especially in those trying times. While Robichaux's had not experienced a bombing, it was only because they had better security, magical and otherwise. She didn't think it was fair that the warlocks were more vulnerable simply because they weren't as strong magically by nature. While Augustus may not like Cordelia's decision to reveal themselves, as the Supreme he had to respect it.

 _There's nothing to do about it anyway, we need to move forward._

The group had made their way to the circular art piece that stood as the school's entrance and took the elevator down. The school was the complete opposite of Robichaux's, since it was underground there was literally no sun that pierced its walls. The light from electric lights and candles and the central fireplace was low and soft, a constant golden glow that never got any brighter; the elevator door opened to a hallway to the concourse that housed a fireplace that was also constantly roaring.

John Henry Moore, one of the four teachers at the school was there to greet them. He was an imposing figure at 6' 2", impeccably dressed and probably the only warlock Ms. Snow ever got even close to something akin to respect.

Romy suspected Ms. Snow had a small crush on him, and as handsome as he was, she didn't blame her. But it was also pretty well known that Mr. Moore's interest ran to the same sex, but Ms. Snow always had appreciated art and beauty so perhaps to the red-haired witch it didn't matter.

They were joined by three other warlocks, the school so small that the instructors also made up the Warlock's Council. They all greeted each other respectfully, although the Grand Chancellor's salutation seemed unusually jovial and he looked almost fit to burst from some unknown happiness.

Romy made sure the Supreme and witches were all set in the library and helped Mr. Chablis set up his stenotype. While the warlocks' reception of the Witch's Council was polite, it could only be described as chilly and forced. Their interaction with Romy was different, their smiles actually reached their eyes and they were happy to see her.

"Is everyone alright? Anyone need water?" Romy asked helpfully, taking her duty as Ms. Benson's assistant seriously as she knew she really had no right to ask to be brought along.

"Water would be good," Cordelia spoke for all of them. Grand Chancellor Augustus looked annoyed that the Supreme acted as their voice in **his** school but held it in, he smiled at Romy to let her know that he would actually like some water, the others had followed suit.

There had been a crystal pitcher on the table already, and while the kitchen wasn't that far away, she was used to using her powers to do simple tasks. She grabbed the carafe to steady it, and her other hand hovered over the mouth. She took a deep breath and concentrated on feeling the elements around her, water was abundant enough that she had pulled it from the air and made it materialize inside the vessel. With another breath, she had chilled the water to just above freezing and poured everyone a glass.

Cordelia, Myrtle, and Zoe had pride in their eyes at how advanced their girl was, knowing no boy at the school could come close. Ariel caught their looks and couldn't wait to show Hawthorne's own pride and rub it in their faces.

"OK, let me know if you need anything. I'll be with Dracen and my phone is on."

John Henry smiled, he liked Dracen and thought Romy was lovely. He also knew the relationship irritated Myrtle, and some other prominent members of the witches' community, which amused him. He thought Ms. Snow looked like she was in physical pain to think of one of her most promising girls with a Hawthorne boy, Cordelia looked concerned but ultimately knew Romy had free choice to whom she spent time with. None of them were keen on getting in the middle of what ought to be a family matter, witch family dynamics were a messy and sometimes fatal affair.

* * *

Romy walked through the halls of the school confidently, smiled and said hello to those she passed and let herself into Dracen's room. He had been on his bed, reading a book and waiting for her to finish with the Council. His face lit up when she entered, and he almost jumped from his bed. They met each other midway through the room, he picked her up and spun her around; she laughed in glee and when he put her down, he leaned in for a kiss. She ran her hands through his silky black hair, their foreheads met after their kiss. She inhaled his masculine scent, something she had missed the past months she had been separated from him. With a flick of her hand, she had the door slowly close and they fell into bed. They lazily kissed, reacquainted themselves with each other, his hands roaming over her body and started to loosen her clothes.

"Hmmm…no, not now," she grinned into his kiss, stopping his hands from disrobing her. "I'm on call, I need to be…presentable in case Cordelia needs me."

Dracen whimpered in disappointment but did not attempt to unclothe her further. He smiled, still happy that she was there and understood her reasoning. He knew they were lucky she was able to tag along, and it was sooner than it would have been if she had to wait until school had let out and purchased a plane ticket on her own.

Romy smiled back at him, glad that he was not the type to take "no" as a "complain and try to convince" her to have sex with him. He gave her an Eskimo kiss and was content,

"So what had you been up to at Hogwarts?"

She giggled, he could be so silly sometimes.

"You know you also go to a magic school?"

"Yeah, but you all are actually powerful. You learn to transform things on a cellular level, you can spell cast individually. It takes like five of us chanting at the same time to do anything. One of your instructors have all but one of the Seven Wonders, the ones here barely have two."

"Hey," she said gently, "you all are just as magical as us. Your talents might be different, but we're all magic to our core. Most witches only have one or two gifts, this generation is just oddly powerful because of the crazy shit that went down before I got there. And you're going to make it to Level 3, I feel it in you," she emphasized her point by laying her hand on his heart. A scarlet glow emanated from her hand,

"See? That's your magic, not mine. And you have telekinesis, that's one of the Wonders and you're way ahead of your classmates, some of mine too."

He smiled shyly, still unsure but he swelled with pride at her confidence in him.

"So, I'm here on business Mr.," she said in a mock serious voice. "So what is the deal with Michael Langdon?"

As Dracen told her what he knew, someone had observed Romy walk through the halls and enter a boy's room.

"Who is that?" Michael Langdon asked the student assigned to keep him company. He had been there a couple of weeks, but he was a special guest and had been sequestered for most of it. He had special privileges such as his own room, a larger one normally reserved for teachers and one on one tutoring. He had been told that the Witch's Council was coming, but the girl clearly was too young to be a member and she was not in the meeting he knew was concurrently going on.

"That's Romy Bishop, of **the** Bishops of Maryland. She's from one of the original families that had escaped Salem, came to New Orleans, and then went back up north in the last fifty years. The Bishops are richer than God, and basically fund Robichaux's," Joshua Scott told him, more than happy to gossip. They walked through the school, they had no particular place to go as the instructors were in a meeting. Lessons had been suspended for the day, the school was abuzz with what it could be about. Most knew it had something to do with Michael, and everyone had their own theory. Most were too scared to approach him, all unsure his place in the school.

Josh was not from a prominent warlock family, and he basically lucked out on shadowing Michael around simply because he happened to be within John Henry's eyesight when they needed someone. He felt it would behoove him to get on Michael's good side, hoping the warlock would be his ticket to the upper echelon of magic society.

"Does she have her own room here?" Michael inquired, wondering if the girl was so revered to even warrant a de facto spot in the school; he had his doubts since he felt the hatred Grand Chancellor Augustus felt for the witches since the moment they met.

Josh snorted, thinking Michael's question was close, but the truth was much more scandalous and fun.

"Sort of," he giggled a bit more. "She's 'best friends' with Dracen Wilde."

"You say that as if it's not true."

"Well I'm sure they are best friends, but everyone knows they're a bit more…intimate than that."

Michael raised an eyebrow, still unsure what the other boy was trying to allude to. Josh had stopped laughing, unsure how to explain it as he was certain most others would have gotten the joke.

"Well, it's that they're clearly fucking…having sex…because she always stays in his room and we do have extras since there are so few warlocks," he further explained when Michael was still confused.

 _Did he grow off the grid or something? By some paranoid cult?_

"Oh, so they're dating?" he was at least nominally aware of human courtship.

"Well, sort of…it's just that she's the daughter of a prominent witch family. They're practically royalty, second only to the Supremacy. It's one of the reasons they let her basically do whatever she wants. She comes and goes, she gets to stay in Dracen's room. But if the rest of us try to have a boyfriend or girlfriend over, they're kicked out immediately and we're given a three-hour lecture on propriety."

He wasn't bitter, he really wasn't.

"So why exactly are they 'not' dating?" there seemed to be some distinction, he wanted to know.

"The Wilde's aren't a prominent family. They're actually a subservient family, the Bishops have employed the Wilde's for generations…it's like someone from House Westerling or Clegan trying to date a Lannister."

That meant absolutely nothing to Michael, he started to sweat because he felt like it was becoming obvious he had only been a teenager for less than two years.

"Anyway," Josh had moved on, not wanting to embarrass Michael and unsure why the other boy didn't understand his references. "Her family is against the relationship. So they just say they're 'best friends' but we all know they're like totally in love."

"I'm surprised a witch family would tolerate even that," he would have thought having magical powers would have gotten rid of anyone they didn't like, he certainly had the urge to kill for lesser trespasses.

"The Bishops are misandric assholes, that's why. They think Dracen is just like this phase she's going through if they really know what is going on, they allow it because she's young. She's probably going to take over the family business—or like co-takeover, I think she has like an older sister with gifts—which is all hedge funds, wall street, portfolio management something or other. They're pretty handy at Divination, so they always know what to invest in and all that. But anyway, I think there is some coven in Europe they're hoping will have a husband for her. Not that husbands last long in the Bishop family."

"What do you mean?"

"There's a tendency once a husband sires a few children, witch children specifically, they're set aside or replaced with a 'newer model' if you get my meaning."

Michael didn't, but he nodded as if he did.

"Romy is actually pretty cool, though. She respects us, and when she stays over she tries to help some of us with our spell casting and developing at least one of the Wonders. And if you ask, she'll actually help you spell protect your room and even some charms. She tried to get the whole house protected, but the assholes on the Witch's Council said no. And I think Augustus said no anyway. Robichaux's has never been bombed so clearly their protection spells work, not sure why they would be so stubborn."

Michael wondered who had dared to bomb a warlock's home, he would have killed them all.

 _I just might, these may be my soldiers in ending the world. I should avenge them, kill those who would hurt us._

"I think I'll rest in my room," he told Josh, he had grown bored and wondered how the meeting was going.

 _I think I'll make use of astral projection, practice makes perfect._

* * *

Romy and Dracen had caught up with each other and relaxed in his room until Cordelia and the other witches were ready to leave. They remained on his bed, cuddling and enjoying each other's closeness, they started to read to go over some spells they wanted to attempt.

Magic made it exceedingly easy to be lazy and lounge in bed. Dracen had floated the books to them, he worked on his endurance by making the books float in front of him and turning the pages while simultaneously reading. Her phone pinged letting her know they were getting ready to leave and she needed to see them out.

Both of them straightened their clothes to look presentable and made their way back to the library. Whatever the meeting had been about, it clearly did not go the warlocks' way as they all looked like they were on the verge of a mutiny.

 _Am I even going to be allowed to stay here the week?_

Romy worried that whatever had happened would get her disinvited, she waited for one of the instructors or the Grand Chancellor to say something, but it seemed they were content to rage in silence.

"Is everything OK?" she mouthed to Mr. Moore as they both fell behind the rest as they were heading towards the elevator. The instructor sighed and felt bad at the girl's concerned look, hating that she may be caught in the middle of two warring adults that had their own agendas. While he did not agree or like the witches' assessment on warlock abilities, part of him was glad they would block Michael from the Supremacy. Arial may think the boy was their ticket to the highest office, but he sensed something off about Michael. There was something dark and unnatural about him, his abilities were far too advanced for someone so young—even if he was the Alpha, there was something not right about his ascendancy coming at seventeen.

Fiona's own inheritance of the Supremacy not too long after her teens was proof enough for him that becoming the Supreme or Alpha so young was not a good idea. Perhaps he would feel better if Michael had a few more years of training, and more time for him to observe the boy. They could always revisit the idea of the teen becoming the Alpha later on. If destiny had chosen him to lead the coven, then there would be nothing Cordelia or any of the other witches could do about it. Fate chose the coven leader, not the reigning Supreme despite the tradition that they name their successor.

"Everything is fine," he assured Romy and Dracen, although he was not as confident in that assertion as he would like to be. "It's just a pissing contest between two powerful beings, the Grand Chancellor didn't get his way, so he'll probably be licking his wounds for a while. But don't you worry about that, you just enjoy your time here."

He was glad to see her smile and relieved.

"I was thinking we could have a group session outside tomorrow morning? Maybe hike to Falchuk Ridge. You should come, I worry about your vitamin D. You **all** need to see some sun."

John Henry barked a laugh, charmed by her genuine concern and a refreshing change from the disdain he encountered with most witches.

The same disdain Myrtle Snow threw his way when she turned around, offended by his amusement. John Henry, Dracen, and Romy looked sheepishly away, trying to refrain from more laughter. They finally got to the elevator, only the witches stepping into the steel lift as the warlocks had no intention of seeing them any further.

Only Romy waved them goodbye, the other witches intent on leaving as quickly as possible. Her sweetness softened Ariel's rancor enough for him to wave goodbye back, but only to her.

"So…productive meeting?" Romy asked as the elevator rose to the surface, wondering if they would tell her what happened.

"As productive as anyone could be with small delusional men who aim too high," Myrtle said flippantly, thinking the entire trip was a waste of time.

"What did they want? Did it have to do with the new boy?"

"Yes, they seemed to be under the preposterous belief that a warlock could ever be the Supreme. It's almost tragically sad, if they weren't such spiteful hateful creatures."

Romy's eyes widened, surprised they would put forth one of their own for the Supremacy. There had never been a male Supreme, and not one had ever attempted to say there was. The four instructors maybe had two of the Wonders, and maybe one more personal gifts unique to them. While Myrtle's disdain was oozing out of her pores, Romy was willing to give the warlock's the benefit of the doubt. Ariel may be ambitious, but he was also proud. He wouldn't put forth a potential Alpha unless he actually thought Michael was the one, he wouldn't risk looking like a fool; especially not in front of Cordelia and the Witch's Council.

"Dracen said there was a prophecy?" she recalled that there was a foretold warlock that would rise to the Supremacy.

"Made by a man. Like everything they do, it was done half-assed and probably fueled by a masturbatory fantasy rather than a real vision of the future. The 'Alpha,'" she scoffed in derision, "is a child's tale, a lullaby impotent men tell flaccid little boys to make them believe one day they'll be something special."

 _Jesus, Snow._

Even Cordelia and Zoe looked uncomfortable at how Myrtle put it, but it seemed they didn't necessarily think she was wrong, the Supreme did want to make a clarification,

"They want to put an unseasoned boy, no older than you, through the Seven Wonders. It is dangerous for anyone to attempt, much less a boy they had found a few weeks ago."

As much as Romy respected them, she did think it was rather messed up how they discarded everything the warlocks said simply because they were men. But Cordelia's reasoning seemed sound, she knew that people have died attempting the Seven Wonders. Zoe had said she had—an accident involving Transmutating—and was only brought back when Cordelia used Vitalum Vitalis. Romy also knew of Misty Day, one of the witches who had also attempted the Seven Wonders with Zoe and perished attempting Descensum; once a witch was lost to the underworld, even a Supreme could not recall her back. It was one of the first things any new witch at Robichaux's was taught along with who the Supreme was. The Test of the Seven Wonders was not something to take lightly or attempt on a whim. She agreed that perhaps Michael was too young to try, but she didn't think the notion ought to have been disregarded simply because he was a warlock.

Instead of furthering the conversation, as she was certain that the reason for Ariel's anger was their dismissal of Michael's potential (at least on Myrtle's part, she was certain Cordelia had at least attempted tact), she would just ask Dracen and maybe even John Henry later. She wondered if maybe now that Michael had been put forth as a candidate for the Supremacy, maybe he would join the others in their lessons.

They reached the top, they all squinted from the bright afternoon sun after being in darkness for so long. They made their way out of the spiral, and once they reached the opening they had stopped. Romy saw there were three people coming their way, she didn't know who two of them were but recognized the third as Queenie.

"Holy shit," was all that Romy could say, seeing her former instructor who she knew had died back in 2015. The three had stopped, the two unknown persons had looked aloof and almost bored, Queenie was the only one who smiled at them and gave a little wave. Romy looked to Cordelia whose colour had completely drained from her face, seeing two of her lost coven proved too much and she had fainted.

"Shit," Romy rushed to her side, and everyone had the same idea as they crowded around the Supreme. No matter what they did, they couldn't seem to rouse her.

"We need to get her back to the school," Zoe took charge.

"Not that dark and dank cave, we should take her to the hospital," Myrtle countered, thinking a doctor would be real help and not the idiotic men who thought they could do magic.

"The closest hospital is at least thirty-minutes away, they have a nurse on hand. A magical nurse," Zoe insisted, they didn't have time for Snow's prejudice. With magic, they lifted their Supreme and brought her back down to the school and laid her on the couch in the library. Romy started to get worried when Cordelia started to mumble and move, it sounded like she was having a nightmare.

The nurse came around and said it looked like she was fine, Myrtle made a few snide remarks on male nurses but most had ignored her as they knew she was mostly worried about the woman she considered to be a daughter.

Romy stepped back, knowing she was better off out of the way as she had no idea how else she could be helpful. She wished Dracen hadn't been dismissed, so would have liked to have someone else she knew there to talk to and distract her. Others had hovered over the unconscious Supreme, all anxiously waiting for her to wake up. The two unknown guests had the same idea as Romy and gathered around her, she decided to introduce herself,

"Hi, I'm Romy…I'm a student at Robichaux's."

"Madison Montgomery," the blonde girl responded, looking her up and down and wondered how long she had been dead as she was certain people should still have known about her.

"You're an actress, right?"

Madison perked up, glad to know she was finally getting the recognition she deserved.

"You were in that mermaid movie, and the one about the girl detective. My cousins **love** those movies. I had no idea you were a witch, that's so cool."

That had deflated Madison's happiness,

 _Did those basic bitches never mention me?_

"This is Michael," Madison diverted the conversation, "he saved me from hell."

Romy blinked, not expecting that.

"Oh, hi…I'm Romy…," she then fully realized exactly what he had accomplished. "wow…you were able to concurrently do Descensum **and** Resurgence?"

Descensum was impressive enough, but Resurgence was a rare power and beyond what even most Supremes were able to do.

He nodded, observing her reaction and noticing how different it was from any witch or warlock he had come across. The instructors, with the exception of John Henry, had all fawned over him and almost shook with glee. Queenie had accepted his help and was grateful but was reserved and almost suspicious.

It vexed him how many people seemed to sense his darkness, he needed to keep an eye on them as they would be potential road blocks.

Romy, on the other hand, seemed genuinely impressed but without any ulterior motive. Ariel, Baldwin, and even Behold's regard for him solely seemed to stem from their desire to overtake or show up the witches.

"Wow, that is insane."

Normally he would have been insulted, but her demeanor and smile told him that she didn't mean it as such.

"So you were dead?" Romy turned back to Madison, unable to stay on one topic for long and slowly processing everything, surprised that not only was the actress a witch but she had been dead. All the news reports only said she had disappeared. "What happened, hunters?"

"No, that asshole Kyle had choked me to death," she sneered, saying it loud enough for Zoe to hear and wanting to start a fight.

Her instructor scoffed, abandoning her post by Cordelia's side and walked over to them.

"Seems you guys didn't even bother letting anyone know I was dead."

"Given that you had attempted to kill Misty, was going to let me stay dead in order to gain the Supremacy, **and** threatened to expose the coven to the tabloids—we really didn't think yours was a story worth telling. We felt like you disappearing was the kindest thing, besides with how your career was going—it seemed it was just your natural progression."

Romy's mouth dropped in shock at how savage Ms. Benson had been, she had never seen the woman act so harsh. But then she realized something,

"Wait, do you mean Mr. Spencer? Kyle Spencer, that's who killed you?"

"He sure did, is that sonovabitch still at the school?"

"Yeah…he's the butler…" Romy started to question everything she thought she knew about Robichaux's.

She was rather disturbed they had a murderer in the house and no one seemed to care.

"He's not dangerous," Zoe assured her, Romy wasn't all that convinced. "We were attempting the Seven Wonders and I had fallen on the fence and died. She had the power to bring me back and refused to do so…Kyle…"

"Murdered me in cold blood."

"Was distraught and he had…a really rough year."

 _What the fuck?_

Romy felt overwhelmed with all the new information, it seemed there was so much more to the story of Zoe and Queenie's time when they first got to Robichaux's and Cordelia's rise to the Supremacy.

 _What else have they not told us?_

"And given how many times you attempted to kill one of us, even if he didn't kill you I'm pretty sure we would have burned you at the stake at some point."

Madison huffed, knowing Zoe was right and in fairness she did end up in hell.

Romy caught Michael's eyes, wondering if he felt as awkward as she did. He seemed somewhat amused but perhaps it was natural as he was a complete outsider who didn't really know any of them. He was just a new addition who had done them a favor by bringing two of their coven back from the dead without knowing there was a lot of drama between them all.

The unpleasant situation was cut short by Cordelia's crying out in her sleep.

 _ **Hello?**_

 _ **Myrtle?!**_

 _ **Zoe?!**_

 _ **Queenie?!**_

 _ **Hello?**_

 _ **Get back…get back!**_

She finally woke up, confused and unsure of where she is.

"Easy dear," Myrtle says gently, "You're alright. You're with us, you're safe."

"What happened?"

"You lost consciousness," Zoe informed her, forgetting about Madison and walking quickly back to the couch.

"And you had a lot to say about it too," Myrtle informed her, gently dabbing a cold wash cloth on her head.

"I was talking?"

"And screaming a lot, but before that you were screaming out our names. Me, Zoe and Queenie."

"You left me out though," Madison couldn't help but point out. "Not that I'm surprised. Did **you** even know I was dead?"

"We all knew," Zoe told her spitefully.

"You are back," Cordelia ignored the bickering, tears in her eyes and her voice trembling. "I didn't imagine it."

"Well I might be imagining all of you. I'm not 100% sure that any of this is real," Queenie said unsure, almost convinced she was in a dream and she would wake up back at the Hotel Cortez and playing card games with James Patrick March.

Cordelia slowly got up, unable to resist her urge to touch her girls, to make sure they were real and let them know how sorry she was that she had failed them.

"Careful dear," Myrtle warned, but couldn't make Cordelia stop as she was just as overwhelmed and happy; even for the return of Madison.

"Oh, I can't believe it," she hugged Madison Michelin and Queenie and chuckled.

"Maybe you forgot, I'm not much of a hugger," Madison half-heartedly complained while Queenie allowed the friendly gesture.

Despite all that had happened, Romy smiled at the touching moment and had tears threatening to escape from her eyes. She turned to Michael, wanting to thank him for making it all happen, but she was stopped at the intense look he gave the unfolding scene. Romy would describe it as almost quizzical, as if he had never seen such tenderness. He felt her eyes on him, and she smiled at him and mouthed "thank you." He smiled tightly and nodded, unsure how to proceed in such a situation.

"Tough shit," Cordelia told Madison through her happy tears, she wasn't about to let the girl's faux complaint get to her. "You're alive."

"Not if you keep squeezing my neck like this," Madison tried to make light of the situation with a joke. She freed herself from Cordelia's grasp, but smiled; glad that someone was actually glad that she was alive, a part of her afraid that no one would be.

Cordelia looked around as her girls surrounded her, still disbelieving that they had been brought back and now she felt like her coven was complete.

Almost complete.

She saw the boy who had walked with Queenie and Madison, standing next to Romy. With the vision in mind and for his feat, she had decided what to do with Michael and the test of the Seven Wonders. Before she could say anything, the Warlock's Council had come into the library.

"Are you alright?" Ariel demanded to know.

"We were so worried," Baldwin Pennypacker added, although part of Cordelia questioned his sincerity.

"Perhaps the shock of sunlight after leaving this dungeon."

Romy was pretty sure that the warlocks would have killed Myrtle if given the chance and she wouldn't have blamed them.

 _After everything that has just happened, she has to make a smart-ass remark on their home?_

All of the warlocks took a moment to remind themselves that they couldn't kill her, their jaws tightening in frustration almost imperceptive.

"I wasn't prepared for that," Cordelia admitted, not acknowledging the hostilities in the room. She was flanked by Zoe on her left, the younger witch's arms crossed and wanting to appear commanding and Queenie on her right. "for seeing my girls. But I'm OK now, that's what is important. I want to thank you for bringing them back."

"I wanted to get your attention," he replied, his back straight and he confidently looked the current Supreme in the eye. He would not be kowtowed by anyone, Romy was certainly impressed.

"I suspect you got that now," Behold couldn't help but quip, his hands crossed in front of him lest he wave his hands in triumph. Romy had to bite her lip from laughing at how pleased he was and how it must rankle the proud Ms. Snow. Whether the older witch wanted to or not, she had to admit what Michael had done was almost miraculous, even for being who wielded magic.

"He certainly does," the Supreme admitted. "And now I'd like everyone else's attention. I've been presented something, a vision. I believe I saw the future. A terrifying future. Cataclysm. Fire. Death. I saw a man, but not a man."

Everyone's attention raptly glued to Cordelia, a vision from a Supreme was not something they could ignore or take lightly.

"A white face, demonic. He was laughing. Our academy," she turned to Myrtle, tears glistened in her eyes as she recounted her horrific vision. "sister, I saw it reduced to cinders.

"A warning," John Henry knew, dread growing heavier and heavier in his stomach. It had started ever since he had laid eyes on Michael Langdon.

"Maybe, but something in my blood is telling me that the only hope we have of surviving depends on what **I** do next."

Cordelia walked to Michael, appraised him and was ready to give them her decision.

"In two weeks time, at the rise of the Blood Moon, you will take the test of the Seven Wonders."

Behold and Baldwin turned to Michael, wanting to congratulate him. Romy's heart almost stops, feeling she is witnessing a moment in history.

"That is, if you still want to," she wanted to assure him that it was not something she was demanding.

Ariel swallowed hard, looked to Michael, almost worried the protégé would decline.

Michael walked closer to Cordelia, they are of a height with each other and confidently says,

"I do."

"Cordelia, this isn't done!" Myrtle cried out, feeling that even suggesting a man may take the test as blasphemous and a mistake.

"That is my decision, and nothing in the world will change my mind," Cordelia snapped, not allowing anyone to challenge her authority. Myrtle said nothing further, but she seethed inside and is almost tempted to burn down Hawthorne's rather than let such a travesty occur.

"No male has ever made the attempt," she warned Michael. "And if you succeed, you will be the next Supreme. And it will change everything."


End file.
